Scars
by CelestialHarmony
Summary: Sequel to Lumos Obscurum. We all have scars, but what stories do they tell? Neville and Lyra Lestrange race against the Dark Wizards intent on restoring Voldemort again and battle the ups and downs of love and life in the Wizarding World. Neville/OC
1. Chapter 1: Scars

"_When I stand before thee at the day's end, thou will know that I had my wounds and also my healing."_

- Rabindranath Tagore

**Chapter One**

The ride back to Neville's home was a quiet one under the stars of a clear night. As the broom touched down on the balcony outside his small apartment, he gently kissed the cheek of the brunette in his arms, rousing her from where she had been resting against him.

Lyra stirred a bit, lifting her head and gave a mumbled noise to let him know that she was awake before he smiled and helped her down off the broom.

He knew she would be tired. The past month had been hell for her and it was mostly his making. She had spent two weeks at St. Mungo's under their care to heal from the incident in the graveyard of Little Hangleton and only been released earlier that morning.

His first act when she got free of the hospital? He took her straight to the Ministry of Magic's courts to face her father and a spell to test their blood connection.

The spell had in fact proved that Lyra was the biological daughter of Rudolphus Lestrange, making it clear that she was not the child of Voldemort as the Dark Wizards following Blaise Zabini had believed.

It had to be done though. To assure that they would not come for her again, he had to make her face her father. At least now he knew for a fact that she was safe from the Dark Wizards for now.

"We're here." He whispered to her and led her into the apartment, waving his wand to flick on the lights.

She was silent by the door as he took off his back pack and put the broom in the cupboard. When he turned back to see her far off expression, he worried his lip and moved back to stand before her.

"Lyra? What's is it?" He asked her and she moved her brown eyes up to meet his.

"Nothing…I'm just thinking…" She told him and he moved a hand to touch her cheek.

"About what? You look so sad."

She forced a smile. "I'm okay, Neville. I was just thinking about how it feels like home here."

He smiled back at that and dipped his head to kiss her on the forehead. "It could be home, you know…if you wanted it to be." She shook her head slowly. "You've helped me a lot already, Neville. I mean, it was sort of forced on you to take me in." She told him and he sighed lightly, pulling back to look into her eyes.

"That's true…I didn't want you here at first, but I like having you around. When you were gone, when they took you away and you had to stay at the hospital, this place was empty. It felt like a shell, like all the life was gone. I hated every time I came home and you weren't here." He ran his fingers back into her hair, holding her eyes. "You're welcome to stay as long as you want…"

"I think I'd like that…" She smiled and leaned up to kiss him softly on the lips. It was a sweet kiss, light and just a simply brush of lips and for a moment, Neville thought that was all it might be, but when he moved to pull away, Lyra's arms were moving to rest on his shoulders so he did not pull away and she kissed him deeper.

His eyes widened just a bit and then slowly shut again as he moved his hands slowly to her sides, a little unsure of himself.

It wasn't that he was so unsure what to do exactly, but Lyra made him nervous. He did not want to do something that might be a little too much for her at the moment. Hannah had taught him a lot when he had been with her, as had a couple other girlfriends that had not lasted long, but Lyra was different.

He had never felt anything for the others like what he felt for her.

When she parted her lips in the kiss, he pushed things a little and let his tongue slip into her mouth for a taste. She made a shocked sound in her throat, but then calmed a little as he rubbed her side lightly.

The tension in her was slowly melting by degrees and he let out an approving sound when her hands moved from his shoulders to his chest and he stepped back with her against the wall in the entry way. His hands ran along her sides and down to her hips, pulling her tight into his body before he pulled from her lips and started to kiss along her throat.

Lyra could feel her head spinning, her eyes opening a moment when he moved away from her mouth, but when she realized where his mouth was going, panic rose in her and she gently pushed at him.

"Neville, no." She gasped lightly and he raised his eyes to look at her with concern.

"What…what is it?" He asked and saw the embarrassment in her face.

"My scar. It's horrible…I don't want you to kiss me there…" She whispered to him softly, worried it might put him off.

Sighing softly, he met her eyes again and moved a hand up to her cheek, stroking it with his thumb. "Does it hurt for me to kiss it…?"

She swallowed nervously and shook her head and he smiled, tipping her head gently as he lowered his lips again to run his tongue along the scar as she whimpered.

"I don't think it's horrible at all, Lyra. It makes you stronger…more beautiful. You survived this…not many could have." He whispered and nuzzled his lips against the thin line that ran from under her left ear across just past the center of her neck. He had his own scars, hers did not bother him in the least.

When she started to relax again with his attention, he made another move forward and moved his hands back to her hips and under her rear, lifting her up a bit until she had to wrap her legs around him for support and he put his weight against her hips, pinning her to the wall.

She laughed lightly when she felt him pressing against her through her jeans and his slacks and she lifted her head a little for him to explore more of her neck while she gripped his shoulders.

"I want you." He whispered to her and she smiled to that, answering him with a heated kiss that all but curled his toes and before she could tell him no, yes, or give him any other sign either way, he was walking toward the bed room with her.

She found herself being tossed on the bed and Neville followed her down, pointing his wand behind him he uttered a quick incantation and the dangerous plants in his room were vanished into thin air. She let out a soft laugh, but it was silenced when he was suddenly on her mouth again like she was his air. Her body turned to wet clay under him and she gave soft sound before running her hands up from his sides and under his shirt.

The button-down was easily undone and her fingers went up to explore the skin of his stomach and chest, smiling a bit to herself when he sucked in a ticklish hiss of air and let his lips run down to her shoulder. She paused as she felt the sudden smoothness of lines on his chest and she pulled back slowly to look at his exposed skin, a frown coming to her face at what she saw.

She knew Neville had his wounds from the Battle of Hogwarts, but the scars on his chest told several stories of several battles. She traced her fingers along them slowly, wondering where each came from. One particular set carried three slash marks from over his left shoulder down across one nipple and to his abdomen where the muscles were lean, but toned. He was no body builder, but he wasn't exactly the scrawny boy she remembered seeing taking off his shirt for a swim in the lake.

These scars had definitely not been there back then.

He let her explore the scars silently, watching her mind working a she took her fingers and ran across the scar that had her attention at the moment before he finally spoke. "A wendigo…It clawed me up quite a bit…"

Her eyes widened a little at that. He survived a fight with a creature like that? He chuckled at the look on her face and reached for her hand, pressing it lightly back to his scars. "Don't ever be ashamed of your scars around me. I wouldn't trade my scars for anything and I love yours…" He told her softly.

She smiled and kissed him softly once more while he brushed his fingers into her hair. Why did he have to always say just the right thing to melt her like chocolate in a warm pot? She brushed his shirt off his shoulders and tilted her head up to catch his lips again in a eager kiss and he met her with it, his hands going to her own shirt to lift it up and over her head. Sucking in another hiss of air when he saw her laying there in just her jeans and bra.

It did not take long for the rest of their clothing to end up in a scattered mess about the dark bedroom and Lyra felt her tension rising. The nervousness rising in the pit of her stomach from uncertainty and she knew Neville was feeling the exact same.

He did not let the moment hang in the air though. His hands reached for her and though he wanted to take it slow, make it perfect, he could not deny his lust and her own need. In one smooth, firm motion, he was inside of her and he couldn't help the shudder of utter pleasure that raced through him.

She was perfect. In every way she was perfect to him and when they finally collapsed together two hours later on the bed, he held her close against his warm, sweat slicked chest and stroked her hair until she was asleep in his arms.

He wasn't far behind her, bending to kiss her softly. "Night, beautiful…" He whispered to her and knew deep down he never wanted to let her go or lose her again.


	2. Chapter 2: Little Blessings and Curses

Chapter Two

_One month later_

She couldn't believe it. Out of all the things that they had been through in the past couple months and this had to happen.

How?

Of course…she knew how it had happened, but still. They had been careful. They had used precautions. Except for that first time.

That had to be it.

The one time that they had not performed a contraception spell and this was the result. She sighed softly, taking a deep breath as she looked down at the plastic stick in her hand and looked at the tiny plus sign for what felt like the thousandth time today. She was sitting in the bathroom on the side of the tub where she had been sitting for the past two hours contemplating just what to do. What to say.

How in the world was she going to tell Neville she was pregnant? What would he say? She didn't know what his reaction would be and that honestly scared her.

Would he be happy? Upset?

There were so many possibilities.

What if he got mad?

Damn it, though. This was just as much his fault as it was hers!

Sighing, she put her head in her hands and tried to think of a way to tell him tactfully, but nothing was coming to mind.

She could always just skip into the room and tell him, but no…that just seemed stupid. This was a life changing event, not tickets to the Quidditch Cup.

How could she possibly be thinking about being a mother to someone? She was barely out of school herself. Hell, she had never even completed her last year at Hogwarts, but here she was in this mess now. At twenty-two, she was unprepared with no real mother figure to turn to. Of course, there was Andromeda, but she had her hands full already with her grandson Teddy.

She supposed she could look to Hermione for some help, but that too seemed like stretching too much in the tentative friendships she was trying to build and mend with the people who had saved her life.

And her mother was gone now…not that she would go to her for help with advice on how to rear a child in the first place. Her mother's answer would have been concealing her pregnancy in Azkaban, subjecting her unborn child to who knew what while in the cell and then leaving it half dead in the cold for the Dementors to rip at its fragile mind.

No…she would not be a mother like that.

She went out into the kitchen to find something to make for dinner, finding herself only staring in the cold fridge as if something might just jump out at her, but nothing did. Her mind was trying to go in so many directions in once that she just could not get things to straighten out.

She was pacing the living room an hour later when Neville came through the door and she went still as he came in, taking off his coat with a sigh as he threw it over the coat rack, which magically reached out and caught the coat that nearly missed the mark.

He did not even look her way as he started to kick off his shoes and empty his pockets on the table by the door where he put his loose galleons at the end of the day. "Merlin, today was terrible, Lyra. Can you believe that we had two leads on the Dark Wizard's hideout and neither of them turned up anything. No clues, nothing, save for a couple booby traps. One nearly took my head off."

He went past her to the kitchen for something and she let him pass, wrapping her arms around herself slowly.

Not even a hello kiss? She tensed inside. If he was in a bad mood and she told him then what reaction could she possibly expect? She worried her lip and heard him open the oven, then the microwave, and finally the fridge.

"Lyra, weren't you going to make dinner?" He asked and looked to her and she shrugged.

"Yeah, but I kind of got side tracked." She told him and he groaned, shutting the empty fridge.

"Looks like take out, I guess. Could have at least called for something…" He muttered to himself as he went to the phone.

"Like I know what you would have wanted." She told him and headed off toward the bedroom without another word, slamming it shut. He blinked and shook his head slowly as he dialed the number for the Chinese restaurant down the street.

Once he had their order in, he went to get a shower, but stopped on the way, looking to his plants in the living room. The soil was cracking.

"She didn't even water the damn plants? What the hell has she been doing all day?" He swore under his breath and slipped into the bathroom, peeling out of his clothing and looked at himself in the mirror. A new bruise was blossoming on his cheekbone from a knock he had taken during a skirmish in Diagon Alley earlier in the day and his eyes were tired.

He really needed to find a way to get out of these twelve hour shifts. Not that he didn't enjoy being an auror, but it was taking a toll on his body. He hated feeling so tired all the time.

Maybe it was time to start thinking about going back to Hogwarts and joining Professor Sprout in the Herbology classes. He had been thinking about it for awhile now and Minerva McGonagall, the current Headmistress of the school, had told him that the door was open to him.

He finished up the shower and pulled on a pair of jeans as he heard the knock at the door. Running a hand through wet hair, he went to pay for dinner, pausing in the hall when he saw Lyra already at the door taking care of it. She silently went past him to the kitchen and set the bags down before setting the kettle for some tea.

He followed her and, seeing as she was in no rush to get the meal set out, he took the bag to the table and started to set it out. When the tea was done, she joined him at the table and took her chopsticks, barely doing more for a bit than poking around her carton of chow mien.

"Are you not going to eat?" He asked her after a long period of silence and she gave a small shrug. He shook his head to that and started eating again. What the hell was she in a mood for? She had been home all day doing nothing and now was going to have an attitude? She must have been on her period.

Finally after awhile, he had to break the silence with something and he started telling her about his plans to apply to Hogwarts to become a teacher. Telling her that it would be safer and easier on him as well. Though it would mean that they would have to settle on some time apart.

She stayed silent throughout his entire speech about going away and sat there, looking at the chow mien that she had barely touched. He was going to Hogwarts, where he would be away from her for an extension period. Of course, he could always come home on weekends and at Christmas…but still. That would leave her all alone and with the baby…

"Are you listening to a word I'm saying?" He asked and she jumped a little at that, turning to look at him.

"W-what?"

"Nothing, just fucking forget it, Lyra…" He got to his feet to start cleaning up, leaving her with her dinner at the table and she worried her lip as he shoved his garbage into the trash and tossed his utensils in the dishwasher. He was upset and with good reason.

"Neville, I'm sorry-"

"I said forget it, okay? You've been here all day and all I asked was that you water the plants and work out dinner. That's not hard, Lyra. I can understand if you aren't feeling good or something, but you're just off in some other world." He paused at that and looked to her solidly before he got up and made his way to her. "Let me see your arms."

She looked up to him at his command and then got to her feet, outraged with him. "I'm not on drugs, Neville! I've been clean for almost three months!"

"Then show me your arms." He demanded and she shoved past him to the kitchen.

"I don't have to show you anything. Get away me." She hissed at him and he moved after her quickly. She turned on him just as fast and slapped at him as he reached for her arm, but he was the stronger of the two. After a bright tugging match, he got her sleeve on one arm up and then the other. They were clean.

He let her go and she glared at him angrily, stomping past him to the sink to start cleaning the kitchen.

"So why are you in such a mood then?" He asked, crossing his arms as she washed up, but she wouldn't answer him, focusing instead on cleaning the counters off. "Lyra, talk to me."

"Why don't you go water your plants? They're what's important to you, right?" She shot over her shoulder and it took all the man inside him not to march over and throttle her for being like this.

"And you're not important to me? Grow up, Lyra, and stop being such a bitch."

He really should have just shut his mouth. It would have been the smart thing to do, but he just couldn't bite his tongue. The plate from the sink came flying at him and he stepped back quickly as it shattered on the floor. Staring wide eyed at the busted ceramic on the tile floor before he looked to Lyra who now stood with her arms braced on the edge of the sink and her back shaking as she cried.

"Lyra?" He asked and moved over to her, but she did not respond to him, sobbing softly over the sink. He cursed and reached around her to shut off the water. "C'mon, please don't be like this…what wrong?" He tentatively reached out to put his hand on her back and she shrugged him off, cursing as she got a wet towel and went to clean the broken plate up.

"Can we just talk about this later?" She asked him and he followed her slowly.

"Can't we talk about it now?" He tilted his head to her in question and she shook her head slowly a moment before finally turning to look at him.

"I…I need to tell you something…" She said, wiping her eyes on her sleeve and he felt his stomach tense.

What had she done?

The first thing that jumped into his mind, he knew was not rationale, but he thought of it anyway. She's cheated. She's slept with someone else. The jealous little voice in his head crooned on and he braced himself for the impact of what she might be about to tell him.

"What do you have to tell me?" He asked, holding back his anger that was rising up as she got to her feet to throw away the pieces of broken plate.

"I don't know how to say this…so I'm just going to come out with it, Neville. Please, don't be mad at me."

Merlin's staff, she had cheated on him. He had lost her in barely a month. Was it the long days while he was away at work? It had to be. He thought they were doing well though. She was always pleased with him in bed…and he loved her. What would make her look for that in someone else?

"Just tell me, Lyra." He told her, waiting for the blow to come.

She took in a deep breath and turned to look at him slowly, searching his eyes for his reaction. "I'm pregnant."

The words hit him like a canon ball to the gut and he simply stared at her. His eyes blinking slowly, but he did not know what to say. She was pregnant and it had to be his.

They were going to be parents. He was going to be a father.

He should have been smiling, kissing her madly, but instead he couldn't even think of anything to say. Hurray? That would never work.

"A-are you sure?" He asked and she slowly nodded, looking away from him.

"I took two tests…I'm sure." She said lightly and he reached up to run his fingers through his hair again before he muttered something about needing to go. He had to clear his head, get out of this apartment.

"I need to take a walk…" He told her and headed for the door to get his shoes and coat, not even bothered about a shirt at the moment. He slipped off without another word, leaving her there in the apartment.

Pregnant. What the hell was he going to do?


	3. Chapter 3: Fears of our Fathers

Chapter Three

Neville put the cup of tea to his lips slowly for a sip and tried to steady his nerves. He had come to Harry's house in Godric's Hollow in search of someone to talk to and was glad to see his friend was not already in bed.

The Boy That Lived looked to his old school friend as he sipped his tea across from him on the other couch and he waited for him to calm himself before finally speaking. "So, what did you say when she told you?"

Neville drew in a deep breath. "Nothing. I told her I had to go for a walk."

"You didn't say anything?" Harry whistled lightly when Neville shook his head. "Damn, Neville. She's probably pretty pissed right now…"

"She was pissed before I left..." He said and set his cup of tea down as he looked up and saw Ginny coming down the stairs towards them. He smiled to her as she came over and kissed Harry on the cheek from behind his chair.

"James is bed. He didn't want to settle. What's going on?" She asked them both and Harry looked to Neville to see if he wanted him to say anything.

Neville took another deep breath. "Lyra's pregnant. I just found out."

Ginny smirked brightly. "Really? That's fantastic news, Neville!" She told him, but frowned when he did not seem particularly thrilled. She looked between him and her husband. "…isn't it?"

"It should be, I guess, but…I don't know how to deal with this, Ginny. I mean…you guys were married when James came along. I've only been with Lyra for a few months. We aren't ready for this." Neville told her and Harry tilted his head at his fellow auror.

"I don't think anyone is really ready for surprises like this, Neville, but you're a good man and you're responsible. You'll make a good father…" Harry told him, ushering his wife to sit with him on the couch.

"That's just it, Harry…I'm not so sure I want to be a father at this stage in life…" He felt like an asshole sitting there thinking these thoughts.

"Whether you want to be or not, Neville, it's a bit late to be thinking about, don't you think? The owls have flown and shutting the doors to the owlery now won't do much good. You have to take responsibility." Ginny assured him and he nodded to that, knowing it was true.

He just was not ready for this. "I don't think I know how to be a dad though. To be honest, it scares the hell out of me. All I know is growing up with my grandmother."

"And your grandmother raised you good. You don't have to follow everything she did, but take the good bits." Harry smiled to him and picked up his own tea cup, but chuckled when Ginny stole a drink from it first. "It's all about compromise and trial and error. No one gets it right all the time."

Neville took that in quietly, knowing what Harry meant. Even he screwed up from time to time.

"How is Lyra dealing with it?" Ginny asked curiously and Neville had to take a moment to think on that one. How was she feeling? He honestly had no clue and that made him feel like a prat. She had broken down in tears and he had just stormed out the door because he couldn't cope with the moment.

No wonder she had done nothing during the day. She must have been as confused and scared as he was.

"I don't honest know. I guess I was a bit selfish. I left after she told me…I needed to clear my head after we fought. I'm an idiot…"

Harry shrugged at that, sitting back in his seat. "That's alright. Ron fainted when Hermione told him. Knocked his head on the desk and ended up needing stitches. When Ginny told me I said something stupid…I don't even remember what it was…"

Ginny chuckled lightly. "I remember exactly what it was. You said you wanted a girl so you could spoil her rotten and buy her all sorts of pink dresses and bows and a pony. And now we have James."

"Who I'll still spoil rotten…but he's not wearing pink or hair bows. I'm going to start training him on the broom the first second he can balance on one. Make sure he becomes a Quidditch star like his dad and granddad." He grinned and Ginny only rolled her eyes and looked back to Neville who was smirking lightly to them.

"The point is, Neville, that no one is perfect when they get the news. We all get scared, but it's the actions that define you. You love Lyra, so get back home and tell her you're going to be beside her through this." Ginny told him as she reached across for his hand and squeezed it lightly. "It will work out, trust me."

Neville nodded to that and he finished up his tea before he left their house for the night. Ginny was right. He had to be a man about this and he would be responsible, even if he still was scared to death that he would not be the father that he wanted to be.

He pulled on his coat outside the house and started off down the street towards town. He had one more stop to make before going home.

* * *

><p>Lyra awoke to the sound of the bedroom door opening and she felt her sour mood suddenly coming back to full force. After Neville had left, she had been so mad, so frustrated that she had cried herself into vicious sobs so terrible that it had left her dry heaving over the toilet.<p>

How could he have been so selfish? So cruel? What more was she expecting? And here he was trying to come to bed with her?

"I left you a pillow and blanket on the couch." She told him coldly where she lay and she heard him pause by the edge of the bed. "Neville-"

She had been about to yell at him when she noticed him standing at the side of the bed in the dark and she groaned, reaching out to turn on the light. There he was standing with a bouquet of bright flowers that she had never seen before. Some bright lilies with white and pink and in his other hand was a shopping bag. She eyed him curiously and he set the flowers down on the night stand before he tipped out the bag next to her.

Two pairs of shoes spilled out onto the bed and she blinked, picking up first the blue booties then the pink. She turned her eyes back up to him in confusion and he sank down on the edge of the bed so he was facing her. His arm bracing on the other side of her as she sat up.

"I know I was a jerk earlier…and I'm sorry…but I'm scared, Lyra. I'm scared about raising a child. They're so small and precious and I'm just…what if I do something wrong?"

Lyra shook her head to him slowly and hushed him with a kiss. "I'm scared too, Neville…I don't know anything about being a mother to somebody…I don't know if I can."

"Of course you can…you're the most loving person I have ever met. You'll make an amazing mother." He told her softly and she smiled to that.

"Then I guess you'll just have to be a good father. There is no one in this world that I would trust with our child more than you. You're a caring person, Neville, and strong like you wouldn't believe."

Neville felt his heart swelling and he reached out to kiss her again softly. "I want to name it in honor of my parents…depending on what it is…Can I?"

Lyra grinned and nodded to him. "And I want to follow with the Black tradition…and name it after a star."

Neville nodded to that and he kicked off his shoes before he squirmed under the covers with her and held her body against him. He couldn't stop himself from putting a hand on her stomach. She wasn't far enough along to show any signs, but just the thought that his child was there inside of her and growing was astounding to him. "So for a boy…what star?"

Lyra smirked and nuzzled down with him in the light from the night stand. "Hmmm. Orion. Frank Orion…and a girl. I'm thinking Alice Cassiopeia."

Neville kissed her forehead and then down to her ear softly, whispering against it. "Are they going to take my last name?"

She nodded to him slowly, shutting her eyes as he started to pull at her pajamas, thinking she should still be angry with him, but that anger was all but dissolved away now. She loved him too much to hold onto the hate.

When she nodded, Neville licked his lips and prepared himself for the next question, nuzzling his nose against her hair and ear again. "And what about you?"

Lyra lifted her head at that as he pulled away. "What…?" She asked him and he smiled lightly.

"I'm asking you to marry me, Lyra. Don't leave me hanging in suspense." He grinned and she laughed softly before leaning up to kiss him.

"Stupid. As if you have to ask."

"I just needed to be sure. Still mad at me?" He asked, lifting her shirt up a little and she stuck her tongue in her cheek a moment in thought, but he only chuckled and took her hands, pinning them to the mattress above her head as he moved over her. "You're kind of cute when you're mad."

"Jerk." She muttered with a smirk and watched as he transferred both her hands to one of his and his hand snaked down past the waist of her pajama pants and made her cry out with what he did with his fingers.

"Am I still a jerk?" He mumbled against her neck as his fingers worked torturously and he grinned when she shook her head, her mouth open a bit in pleasure. "Good…" He claimed her lips with his and drove his fingers that much faster until she cried out again and then sat up to start undoing his belt, but stopped when Lyra got up and beat him to the chase. Moving up to kneel with him on the bed as her fingers made easy work of his belt and pants and he followed suit with her remaining clothing.

Her mouth wandered his skin and lower yet until he was all but groaning in ecstasy from her skilled mouth and when he could take no more, he fell back on the bed and pulled her on top of him to finish them both off.

When she collapsed over him a few minutes later, he was gasping to calm his breathing and she rested against his chest.

"You will marry?" He asked between breaths and she nodded, kissing him again softly.

"Yes, Neville…" She told him and he sighed contently. He did not have a ring, but he would remedy that later. He would not have his child born out of wedlock. He would get her a ring. A perfect ring. And they would get married.

They would have their baby. He would get a job at Hogwarts, quit the work for the ministry, and be a good father. They'd have to buy a new house with a room for the nursery and he would make sure he took care of both of them.

As he laid there in the room with her, still warm inside the heat of her body, he thought about all that he was going to do in life and how bright the horizons were for them.


	4. Chapter 4: Common Ground

Chapter Four

"You're listening to the Beatles?" Neville mused as he stepped into the nursery of their new home in Old Sparrow's Landing. Lyra was spotted with paint that had gotten onto her in the process of turning the nursery, once a dismal forest green to a bright and lively yellow.

He chuckled and reached up to pull a piece from her ponytail as he stepped behind her, humming along to the record player she had going next to her. "Close your eyes and I'll kiss you…tomorrow I'll miss you…"

She smirked to him and turned in his arms to give him a soft kiss, but she didn't want to hug him and mess up his outfit. "You look good…no more scruff." She eyed him a moment, seeing that he had finally shaved down completely from the usual stubble he kept and he shrugged.

"I want to make a good impression at the interview." He told her and she rolled her eyes.

"The Headmistress used to be your head of house, Neville. You were a key in destroying the largest threat to the Wizarding World. And you know more about herbology then Professor Sprout. As if you really need to worry about appearances to get the job." She kissed him again and went back to painting and he grinned.

"Maybe not, but I do want to say I tried at least. Just so I made the effort. The room is looking nice. Sure you don't want me to finish the painting later?" He asked her and she shook her head, getting back to work.

"Nope. I can handle this. You're getting the really hard stuff. Like putting the crib and pram together."

"Easy…" He muttered and she shot him a look with her keen eyes.

"Without the use of magic, remember? We made a bet and you lost."

Neville grimaced and nodded to that. That was right. He had made the bet with her that he really was a useful handyman and to prove it, he was going to put together the baby furniture without the aid of magic. He had not even opened the boxes yet to see the instructions. That was going to be headache enough.

"What time are you leaving?" She asked him curiously as she moved the roller over the wall for a second coat.

"Shortly. It's going to be a long ride by broom. Thought I would just take the train."

"It runs this time of year?"

Neville nodded. "Yeah, the other teachers have to get back and forth before start of term to prepare." He explained and she nodded to that before setting the brush down and stepped back towards him.

"You'll do great today, Neville. I know you will. Just be the man I love and she'll hire you on the spot." She told him and it swelled his confidence. He kissed her again and put a hand on her stomach softly before he bent and softly kissed her there as well.

"I'll start working on the furniture soon, okay? Daddy loves you, little Bump."

Lyra laughed softly, blushing as he talked to her swollen stomach. She was only four months, but the growth was clear now and Neville had been talking to her belly from the first moment he had noticed it. He wanted to be there for every step of his child's life. Though Lyra could see him being quite the overprotective father, but she let it go for now and let him have his way.

He liked talking to the baby and she had no problem with that. Especially when he referred to it merely as the Bump.

He kissed her again and said his goodbyes before slipping out the door to head towards the train station. The Hogwarts Express was eerily quiet and he rode alone save for the grounds keeper that occasionally peeked in with a grumble before heading off once more.

When he arrived at the school, he took the carriages and took a deep breath as the castle appeared before him as he drew closer. It was just as he remembered, but better.

The Battle of Hogwarts had left the place in near ruins, but with some work, it had come around. They had restored it to former glory and added a new wing for Defensive Studies. As the carriage stopped, he headed into the courtyard and through the double doors of the school.

"Neville Longbottom! What a surprise to see you here, my boy. Come back for a haunt?" A voice came from the hall next to him and he turned to smile at the ghost.

"Good to see you again, Sir Nicholas." He nodded to the ghost who gave a nod of greeting of his own. "I'm actually heading to the office of the Headmistress. Care to join me?" He asked and started down the corridor, the ghost at his side.

"Always happy to escort one of my former house-kin. How do you fair?"

"Fairly well in all actuality. I'm here to apply for a job as a professor of Herbology and I'm getting married in the fall as well."

"Splendid! I always knew you were a lad with his head on his shoulders…unlike me." He grumbled and Neville couldn't help but laugh as they came to the entrance of the office and Sir Nicholas floated on ahead of him. "I'll alert Professor McGonagall of your arrival. It was pleasant seeing you again, Mr. Longbottom."

"And you, Sir Nicholas." He nodded again and waited once the ghoul had disappeared, looked around the castle corridor quietly. The place seemed still so…dismal with no students there for the summer.

As his mind wandered back to his own years here, he did not hear the stones of the statue moving and when a familiar voice called to him from behind, he couldn't help the warm smile that spread across his face.

"Neville…"

"Professor." He turned to greet the old woman who stood before him. She looked just the same as he remembered and she smiled to him brightly before pulling him in for a hug.

"My goodness, I am always surprised to see how grown up you all are, but you will always be that young wizard with the toad in my mind. I heard you have been up to quite a bit of trouble lately." She held him at arms length to inspect him and he nodded once.

"Yes, ma'am. No doubt you read all about it in the Prophet." He explained and she pursed her lips.

"It is still such a wonder to me that Lyra Lestrange was alive in the first place, let alone nearly killed by Blaise Zabini." She shook her head in astonishment. "How is she holding up after all of that?"

"Surprisingly well. I left her at home finishing up painting our new nursery."

McGonagall turned to him at that and then chuckled as she took off her reading glasses. "Congratulations, Mr. Longbottom. Seems you really have been up to a lot in the past few months." She beckoned him to follow as she headed for the stairs to her office.

His ears went red at that, but he followed the headmistress up stairs for the interview with a deep breath. He could do this.

* * *

><p>Lyra finished up with the painting and sighed lightly, running a hand through her hair. It had been a chore, but it was done.<p>

What had once been a boring green office was now a glowing yellow center of warmth. She had painted the walls with scenes from her favorite children's stories growing up. On one wall the Hopping Pot was skipping happily on his hairy little foot, Babbity-Rabbity was asleep beside her cackling stump, and the three witches and their knight were cresting the hill of the Fountain of Fair Fortune.

It all looked perfect. Smiling at the job well done, she stretching, hands going to the small of her back for support. Neville would be home probably around seven in the evening, which gave her some time to think about getting dinner ready. She went to get a shower and change of clothes before she slipped onto her broom and headed for Diagon Alley.

She took a walk up the street until she came to an area known as the Witch's Garden and she slipped into the market.

It was packed with vendors and shoppers all searching for a deal. Small auctions taking place at the stalls as people bargained and bartered over everything from vegetables to jars of newt eyes.

She found herself with enough stock and veggies to make a decent pot of Dragon's Heart soup and headed to the stall for the last ingredient. It was not actual dragon's heart, but dragon's blood. Just a few drops from a vial was enough to season anything to the point of unbearably hot, but she had learned to make it years ago from Nymphadora so that it was hot, but also sweet.

As she was paying for the vial, something caught her attention and she looked up, but whatever it was had gone. Shrugging it off, she thanked the vender and put the vial in her bag as she stepped out of the market back toward the alley to collect her broom and leave.

Just as she was crossing Knockturn, she bumped into someone and she apologized quickly a hand going to her stomach and she looked up just in time to see a familiar face looking back at her. "Pansy?" She asked softly, but the girl was gone in a flash into the crowd.

Furrowing her brow, Lyra moved through the crowd a little, trying to see if she could spot Pansy again. She had not seen her former roommate since the Battle. When she caught another glimpse of her, Lyra found herself moving off the beaten path and deeper into Knockturn's dimly lit alley. She was running? She wondered for a moment if Pansy was in league with the Dark Wizards and she got her answer seconds later.

A hex came blasting from behind her and she heard it screamed out through the crowd, but before it could connect, someone was there, pulling her out of the way of the hex and into a side street. She struggled instantly, but went still when she looked up and caught a glimpse of gray eyes and slicked back hair.

"Draco…" She said, a bit stunned and he shushed her, holding up his wand as three Dark Wizards ran past their hiding spot without so much as a glance.

"Invisibility charm…" He whispered to her and she nodded slowly, still shocked that he of all people had just saved her. "What are you doing here alone? You know those prats are looking everywhere for you."

Lyra shook her head at that. "What? Why are they still looking for me? They already know I'm not Voldemort's child. I can't bring him back." She told her cousin and he shook his head in turn.

"This isn't about that anymore. This is revenge. Why isn't Longbottom with you? Or Potter?" He almost spat that last name, but he managed to keep complete distaste from his tone. Then he glanced down slowly and arched a brow. "…put on some weight there, Lestrange…?"

"Haha, I'm pregnant. We need to get out of here…"

"Not til they've stopped combing the area. Longbottom's?"

"Not your business." She cut to him and he shrugged.

"Just curious." He muttered and then swore lightly. "They're about to blast a dispelling charm…hold one."

"What?" She barely got the word out before he was apparating them and she held her stomach as he kept his grip on her and when they landed outside of Malfoy Manor, she rushed away from him to throw up, completely sick from the tossing of her stomach and she knew the baby inside her had not liked the experience much either.

Draco grimaced as she threw up, but once she was done, he took her arm and led her inside and to a chair. "You should not be out on your own like this. Longbottom must be more of an idiot than I thought. Letting a pregnant woman wander their the allies without anyone with her. Unless he's just wanting you to end up at the end of some Dark Wizard's wand."

"He didn't know I was there. And what were you doing there even?" She asked him suspiciously and he sighed.

"I was tracking Pansy. Hard to believe, but I'm not the enemy anymore." He told her and she eyed him again before sighing lightly herself. "Pansy is a Dark Wizard too then?" She ran a hand up into her hair and processed that a moment as he nodded. "Why are you hunting her then? Last I checked you weren't an auror…"

Draco shrugged and moved to his fireplace, picking up the poker to move the wood inside around. "No, I'm not. They were never give me a job like that after what my parents and I did…but I can help in my own little ways."

"Speaking of which, where are they?" She asked as she glanced around the house. Surely her uncle would have been on her by now, snapping like dog on an intruder.

Draco looked up to the painting of his parents above the fireplace. "They're living in Bulgaria now. We moved there just after the war, but I came back here a couple years ago to take over the estate and try to mend things for our family."

"Our family? I thought you disowned me from your family?" She arched a brow and he rolled his eyes. "I was fourteen when I said that. You're still my cousin, Lyra, which makes you family. I'm different than I was back then."

She was silent at his words, looking him over. Perhaps he was. He certainly was acting grown up…which was quite the change in and of itself. She was about to make a comment on that when she heard someone coming and she moved her hand to her wand, but paused when a woman came out with a tray of tea and biscuits, setting them down before them.

"Hello…" the woman greeted her and Lyra glanced to her cousin to be introduced.

"Lyra, this is my wife Astoria. Honey, this is my cousin Lyra Lestrange. The one I was telling you about." He introduced them and Astoria smiled to her, offering her a hand in greeting.

"Lovely to meet you…oh. You're expecting? Our son Scorpius is five months old…" She smiled to Lyra and she glanced to her cousin then.

"Son? Good to know I'm not the only one."

"Seems like we all had a bit of a baby boom after the war." Astoria smiled to her and when she heard crying from down the hall, she quickly excused herself.

Lyra nodded and when she was gone, she looked back to Draco over her cup of tea. "So, you're trying to make amends for what your parents did?"

"And what I did…don't forget that I was a Death Eater too, Lyra." He told her.

"I remember…" She whispered, sipping her drink slowly.

Draco watched her and paced away after a moment, crossing his arms as he did. He wore casual pair of jeans and a white shirt, an old brown suit jacket over it all. "Our families screwed us over quite a bit…" He muttered and she hung her head in agreement.

"Yeah…they really did. All we can do though is just…move on and try to fix the damage."

"Exactly. And that isn't going to happen if we just sit back and watch. That's why I'm out looking for the Dark Wizards. If I can aid in this fight, then I will, though they would never let me to the front lines." He ran his fingers up into his slicked hair. "Hopefully I can do something in the end that won't make the Malfoy name such a dirty one anymore…"

She thought about that. The Lestrange name was just as dirty…but she could take Neville's name and be gone from that stigma. He seemed to sense her thoughts though and he eyed her a moment.

"Just because you get married doesn't make it go away. You're still a Lestrange, Lyra." He told her and she shook her head.

"Maybe so…but even still I'm a more Tonks than I am Lestrange." He chuckled to that and reached for his cup.

"Guess that's right…" He smiled and when Astoria swept into the room with a white headed child in her arms screaming, he got to his feet concerned and took the boy from her.

"He wants his father…" Astoria sighed as she settled Scorpius into his father's arms and Lyra watched curiously. Her cousin shushed the baby, rocking him, but still, he would not quiet down. "Lyra, would you mind? I need to just get some milk from the fridge…"

Lyra blinked and opened her mouth to protest, but Astoria was quickly shuffling the baby from Draco to Lyra and she found herself suddenly holding the infant in her arms and she could feel the delicacy of what she was doing and that caused her fear to spike. What if she dropped him? What if she dropped her own child? How was she going to change diapers? Feed the baby? What if it got sick?

Her mind was numb from thinking, but when Scorpius opened his eyes and she looked down into his blue grey eyes, Lyra suddenly felt the world stop. He reached up to her and she lightly touched his tight fingers with one of her own until she wrapped his fingers around it. Perhaps it was maternal instinct, but she softly shushed him and bounced her arm softly under him where he lay until he quieted and fell back asleep.

That wasn't so hard, she thought to herself

"Think you're ready to be a mother, Lyra?" Astoria asked softly as she came back from the kitchen, seeing her husband smiling softly at his cousin and child.

"I…I think so…" She whispered and held the baby a little longer before she handed him to his mother once more. Just that one glance had given her new confidence.

"C'mon." Draco finally said as he got to his feet. "…Neville is probably going to be looking for you…how about I take you home?"

She nodded to that and got to her feet. Going home sounded like a solid plan. Neville would be home anytime and if he did not find her there, he would not be too thrilled.

With her cousin's hand on her arm and a pop, they were gone from the Manor.


	5. Chapter 5: Orion

Chapter Five

"Now, the first thing you want to remember about Herbology is that it is absolutely fascinating." Neville told his class of first years as he stepped into the greenhouse. They groaned at his words in unison, clearly not buying it. He had expected as much though. "No? No one here thinks that Herbology is interesting?"

When he got no response, he went to a plant at the head of the table and slowly pulled the drape off of it. Under it was an unassuming plant with buds still closed.

The students looked on in confusion and he smiled, waiting for the sun to creep just over the group. "Does anyone want to take a guess what this is?"

No one jumped up for a while, but finally a small boy raised his hand and Neville smiled to him. "Jack, is it?"

"Yes, Professor. Jack Cleery. And it's a…blood orchid, isn't it?" The little boy said shyly and Neville could not fight the grin that spread across his face.

"Excellent! You're exactly right. Ten points to Gryffindor for that one. Now…fifty points to anyone who can tell me what the blood orchid does. Anyone?" He waited and this time Jack sat silent, though he was watching the plant intently and waiting.

"No one knows then? The blood orchid is one of the rarest plants in the world. It only blooms every seven years deep in the jungles, so it's very rare that anyone ever sees one. You're all about to see something very rare happen." He glanced down at his pocket watch. "In…three…two…"

Several gasps came from the girls in the room as the blood red orchids opened with a sparkle of red glow around them. The boys were less impressed, but more curious now than they had been.

"The flowers of this plant have been sought after for years for their ability to rejuvenate the cells of whoever eats them. They are the original Fountain of Youth and for that, they are dangerous. People kill for this plant because it allows them to prolong their life." He told them, now glad that he had their attention. "Herbology is not just about dirt and weeds. It's about a whole world outside of our own, but one that has entwined its roots with ours. What is a witch without her herbs? What is a wizard without his mixtures for potions? Herbology is the key center to many spells and magics that you are going to learn through your time at this school. Now, I want each of you to research a plant this term. You can use your book to help you decide. Choose one you feel comfortable with. We're going to be making a garden in the west courtyard and tending it. Have something picked by next week. You'll be responsible for it. Consider the plant your grade for this class. And nothing carnivorous or I will assign you something else."

The students got to work instantly on looking up their plants, someone wanting to get the easy ones first and he smirked to that as he walked over to where Jack was sitting. "You knew what that plant was the second you saw it…why not say something more?" He asked him and the young boy dropped his eyes.

"My mom loves Herbology…she taught me a lot, but a lot of kids make fun of me when I talk about plants…they tease me." Jack told him in hushed tones and Neville felt that pull at a string in his chest.

"There's nothing to be ashamed of in that. I was just like you as a kid…people made fun of me too. It passes. Just follow what you love and care about and you'll see that you come out the better for it…" He put his hand on the boys shoulder reassuringly. "What are you thinking about planting?"

"Singing Shimmergrass…" He told his professor and Neville nodded to that.

"That's a good one. The girls will definitely get a kick out of it. I think I have some seeds in the back as well…" He was just standing up to go check on the progress of the other students when he heard the door to the green house open and he looked to see the headmistress standing there. She beckoned him to her quickly.

"Is everything alright, Professor?" He asked her and she nodded, keeping her voice down.

"I'm afraid I will be taking over your class today, Professor Longbottom. We just received an urgent owl from St. Mungo's. Lyra's gone into labor." She told him and he felt his face going suddenly white.

Labor. She was having the baby now? "But…it's…"

"Too soon…" Minerva told him in a sad, hushed tone. "You should hurry, Neville…take the fireplace in my office."

He nodded shakily to that and excused himself quickly from the classroom. His first day teaching and this was what happens? He swore under his breath the whole way to the office and barely remembered saying the password before he was running up the steps and went straight to the fireplace, grabbing a handful of floo powder as he went and tossed it into the flames.

When he arrived at the hospital, he was surprised to see Hermione there with Ron in the waiting area and he looked them over. "What are you two doing here?"

Hermione offered him a hug as she got to her feet. "I was helping Lyra organize the nursery…and she started complaining her stomach was hurting. Next thing I know I hear her in the bathroom screaming about blood. I rushed her here because I thought she was miscarrying and had Ron to send an owl to the school for you."

"Where is she?" Neville asked quickly and Ron got to his feet, hugging his friend as well.

"They're just taking her into recovery…" Ron told him, nodding to the door nearby. "They had to deliver the baby. 'mione and I saw them carting it out. It didn't look so good…"

Neville nodded softly to that, still not sure just what was happening. Things had been going okay for the past four months…they were happy. And now this. He went to the door they had indicated and took a deep breath as he saw a similar situation before him yet again.

Lyra lay in the hospital bed on her side, pulled in tight on herself and crying. He set his jaw and went to the bed, slowly moving in behind her and put his hand on her side lightly. He hated being in hospitals…and even more he hated Lyra being in them.

"Lyra?" He whispered in concern and she shivered, her shoulders shaking with a sob.

"I just don't know understand what happened…everything was going so well and now this…I'm so sorry, Neville…" She told him and he shushed her softly.

"It's okay, love. It's not your fault." He whispered and held her to him. He told her and it did little to keep her from crying still into her pillow. She was hurting and he knew it. Despite whatever drugs they gave her for pain, she was weeping for the loss of life from her body. He did not think he could imagine what that would feel like.

When the doctor came to the room and he slowly got off the bed to talk to the man outside, kissing Lyra softly on the shoulder as he left. The pain killers thankfully helping her drift off to sleep though her cheeks were still streaked with tears.

"Mr. Longbottom…" The doctor greeted him and Neville shook his hand.

"Doctor…How is the baby?" He asked, eager to know what was going on with his child.

The doctor looked him over for a long moment. "Your fiance was only five months pregnant, Mr. Longbottom…that's twenty weeks. Most babies don't survive that young outside the womb. You need to both be prepared for that…"

Neville soaked that in. Prepared for what? "…the baby isn't going to make it?" He asked softly in shock. No. He would not accept that. His child couldn't just be taken away like this.

The doctor gave him an apologetic look. "What happens is out of my hands…we're doing everything we can, but in these cases, there is rarely a good turn out. You need to start thinking about making arrangements."

"I want to see the baby…" Neville told him and the doctor took a deep breath.

"I would ask you not to, Mr. Longbottom. Neither of you have a bond with the child yet…it would make things easier if you don't see it. The pain can be terrible, but distancing yourself and buffer that."

No bond! He had been singing to the baby in Lyra's stomach for four months now! He had talked to it. Cradled it. And this man was telling him that the pain would be less if he did not bond with the baby?

"I want to see my child. Now." Neville said firmly and the doctor sighed softly, but nodded to his nurse to go see to Lyra while he led Neville down the hall and to a small, quiet room where there were tiny breathing machines and monitors. He took a deep breath and stepped up to a tiny box the doctor stood before and he looked inside to see a tiny baby swaddled under a blanket, its face purple and red and the blue hat on its small head told him it was a boy.

"Hey, Frank…" He whispered and could feel the hot sting in his eyes and the crushing in his chest. He touched the hard plastic and then reached through the hole in the side to run his finger along the baby's cheek. It shifted lightly, tiny chest moving with the machine that was helping to keep him alive.

He couldn't believe what he was looking at. His son. His own child. One that was on the brink of death, but at the moment, he was touching and the soft, warm cheek under his finger gave him hope. Tiny as he was, Neville hoped the little baby would have the spirit of his mother and the strength of Neville's own parents.

All he had was hope now.


	6. Chapter 6: The Hardship of Living On

**Chapter Six**

_Frank Orion Longbottom._

_Lived 22 days._

"_There is a star in heaven,_

_It comes out every night. _

_We know it's you, Orion,_

_You've come to say goodnight."_

Neville stood over the grave of his son, looking down at it from where he stood above. It was a sun day, but the fall wind cut like a knife into his skin and deeper into his already aching heart.

Kneeling, he put down a small pot next to the headstone and said a soft incantation. The plant inside began to grow up from the soil, reaching out and wrapping around the stone, vines working over it, framing it, and then burst to life with tiny blue flowers.

He shut his eyes a moment before he turned to see Lyra some feet off, not looking at him, but at something in the distance. She had been like that ever since she had given birth. An emotional wreck. It was hard to even get her to eat these days and he even admitted to the loss of appetite over the events of the month.

The death of their child had left him with a bitter taste in his mouth and a hole in his heart that just could not be filled.

He went to Lyra's side and pulled her into his arms, resting his chin on top of her head, but she made no move to embrace him back or say anything. That was fine, he thought. He would just have to let her know that he loved her.

With a soft kiss to her forehead, he guided her out of the cemetery in Godric's Hollow and down the sidewalk. As they walked along, he slipped an arm around her shoulders and held her protectively against the cold chill of the wind. It had been a hard day for both of them and an even longer year.

He had been off work for nearly a month, feeling like an utter idiot as he had only taught one single class of the term, and he had not even made it through that. McGonagall had told him to take all the time he needed, but he still felt depressed that there was nothing he could do.

Lyra was miserable, her eyes losing more light than he ever cared to see in a living person. He just wanted her back.

And he wanted Orion back.

Why did the world seem to be against them?

As they walked along, they crossed onto their street, Old Sparrow's Landing, and finally came to a stop in front of the old brick house that they had moved into only a few months before.

Lyra turned to him, looking at him for a moment before she kissed his cheek and then slipped into the house through the front door. He watched her go, standing there on the bottom step of the house and then sighed softly, taking a seat on the steps and put his hands on the back of his neck.

He just wanted this to be right again. He wanted Lyra back. The girl that was coming out to him since that first day he had walked into the interrogation room. The girl that had kissed him back in school on the astronomy tower balcony.

It was never going to be the same. Things were never going to be like they were before. He sighed and ran his hands up into his hair, hating the world around him that was crumbling and he let himself break now.

He had been strong for so long, acting as the pillar of strength that Lyra needed, but he was crumbling like everything else. And as he sat there, he sobbed out his heart. His son was gone. One he had never gotten to even show his parents…not that they would know either way, but he wanted to be proud. Wanted them to know, somewhere in their shattered minds that he was okay.

But even they would never be the same.

His family was falling apart at the seams and he had no one to turn to help or for advice.

It was too much for him. He wasn't strong enough to handle this all. He was just Neville.

The boy that everyone thought was a lump of useless flesh and blood. The one that never should have been in Gryffindor. He did not have the kind of courage and strength to get through this. Not even at this age.

He cried as the sobs started to fade and then bolted up as he heard a high pitch scream from upstairs in the nursery. Lyra.

He took the stairs two at a time, rushing up them and calling her name to check on her, but when he came to the door of the room, she was standing, clutching Orion to her chest.

"Please…no…" She whispered and Neville stood there in utter confusion until he saw the figure standing near the window that was walking towards his son and fiancé.

He felt his blood go cold in fear and he could not move. He shook as he saw the snake like features, the pale skin. The eyes…

"AVADA KADAVRA!" The Dark Lord yelled and Neville screamed out as the green glow of magic shot towards the two of them.

Lyra sank to the floor, the baby in her arms screaming and Neville stood there, feeling his stomach jumping.

"Oh God…" He reached for his wand, but there was nothing there in his pocket. His legs were stuck in place, muscles unresponsive.

He trembled and turned his eyes to Lyra again, but this time, it was not her that lay on the ground, but his own mother laying there holding another baby in her dead arms. It was screaming and he knew who it was instantly.

It was him.

Neville was looking at himself. He shook his head slowly and as the baby looked up at Voldemort, he could see the scar on his head. A lightning bolt.

"It should have been you…" The Dark Lord hissed to him and Neville blinked, looking to the figure that was turning to mist before him before it shot towards him and through his body.

* * *

><p>Neville awoke with a sudden start, his eyes glancing around the hospital room quickly that he was in. He sat in his usual chair by the window in the room where Lyra had been under watch since her surgery. She was weak and the sadness was not helping her get better any faster.<p>

A broken heart, they had called it.

He glanced over to the bed and ran a hand through his hair. Where was that girl? He checked the bathroom in the room and when he did not find her there, he started to panic slightly. What if his dream was real?

Rushing, he made it to the door and went to the nurse's station as it was late and he found the plump nurse with cat-eye glasses sitting there looking through charts.

"Lyra. Have you seen Lyra Lestrange anywhere? She's gone missing from her room." He asked in a hurry and she looked up to him with a chuckle.

"Calm yourself, Mr. Longbottom. She's gone to the nursery. Jacquelyn took her downstairs a little while ago. They did not want to wake you up. You were fast asleep." She told him and he hung his head.

"Should of done…" He muttered and then shook his head before thanking her and heading down the hall toward the nursery where Orion was being kept. The whole walk he could not shake the dream from his head. The sight of the headstone for his son. Lyra's depression. His own despair.

Voldemort.

Just the thought of him made Neville feel suddenly ill and he leaned on the wall a moment before continuing the walk.

When he reached the nursery, he slowly stepped in and saw Lyra's dark brown hair instantly. She was sitting in a wheelchair next to Orion's incubation chamber and had her eyes shut, her hands around the body of a fragile baby boy that was hooked up to all manner of wires, laying on her breasts. She herself had an IV running to her from the pole beside her and Neville slowly approached them, reaching down to run his finger over the baby's soft brown hair.

Lyra looked up to him and smiled softly, the first smile Neville had seen on her in a couple weeks and it melted his heart for her. God, he loved her. Something about seeing her there with Orion, holding him finally and knowing this was his family…it made the world suddenly not matter.

Everything that might go wrong mattered little to him when he had this moment before his eyes.

"It's the first time I've held him…" Lyra whispered to him softly, looking down to their child at her chest. "I feel like I'm going to break him…"

Neville had to smile at that, bending to kiss her forehead. "He's strong…just like his mother." He told her and she smiled a bit more.

"He looks just like you. Even has your dimple already." She told him and pointed to a soft dip in his cheek and Neville chuckled to that. So he did.

"They say he's improving. Getting stronger. He doesn't even need the oxygen machine anymore. Once he starts being able to swallow on his own then they said that they would release him. Can you believe it? He's going to be okay, Neville." She was crying and Neville couldn't help but let a couple tears fall too.

They were happy tears.

For once, things were looking up. His son was coming home. Lyra was beating back the depression. They were finally going to start this life of their's. He couldn't ask for more than that.


	7. Chapter 7: The Trouble with Prophecies

**Chapter Seven**

Trelawney's classroom was just as he remembered it. Cluttered with a whole array of divination materials from pendulums to crystal balls to hundreds of stacked tea cups that looked like the slightest wind might knock them over.

Neville made his way in while his old professor sat cleaning a table of crystal balls with the ratty hem of her skirt and he smiled lightly to himself as she turned her eyes to him. The glasses making her irises seem much larger like they always had.

"Professor Trelawney, good morning…" He told her and she worried her lip, nearly dropping the crystal ball.

"I…Oh, Mr. Longbottom. Please, it's just Sybill…" She stammered, putting the crystal back into the stand.

Neville nodded to that. "Then it's just Neville, Sybill." He told her and took a seat on the raised platform across from her where the student tables sat up higher than her own.

"What can I do for y-you, Neville?" She asked, clearly a bit flustered at him being there and he found that rather odd. Did she know the reason he was there?

"Actually, I was hoping you might help me understand a dream I had about a week ago…" He took up one of the tea cups from the tables and Sybill snatched it instantly.

"Not with your record of breaking tea cups, dear…" She said as she carefully put it down and then walked away a few paces. "I'm afraid dreams are a bit of a complex matter to divine…" She told him, starting to clean the same crystal once more, as if it were not polished enough the first time.

Neville sighed and watched her, knowing from his time as an auror that something was wrong here. "Think you could try? It has me rather bothered lately…"

Trelawney worried her lip and then sighed softly, looking to him. "What was your dream then?"

Neville told her, explaining to her about the baby and how helpless he had felt and then about the scene in the nursery with Voldemort, Lyra, and Orion.

She listened intently until he finished before she took a heavy seat in her chair at the center of the room, crystal held in her lap now. "Quite the dream…"

"But what does it mean?" He asked and when she was silent for a long moment, he tilted his head. "Sybill?"

She startled out of her thoughts and gave him an apologizing look. "I'm sorry, Neville…but this dream could mean many things. That perhaps you were in a state of immense grief from nearly losing your child…or it could mean that you are going to be hurt by something in the future. Dreams are not straight forward."

"Neither are most forms of divination…" He said and got to his feet. This was not helping at all.

"No, wait!" Trelawney got to her feet and cursed softly as the crystal hit the floor and rolled around her. She stared down at it with wide eyes and then looked to him quickly. "Yes…that's it!"

"What's it?" Neville asked in confusion as the other professor started to rummage on her table for something.

Finally, she seemed to find it and he arched a brow as she pulled out a smooth stone and started to rub it between her fingers as she sat in her chair again, thinking to herself.

"Sybill, please…what is it?" Neville asked walking closer to her as she worried at the stone in her fingers.

"When was your son born?"

"July 28. Why?"

"Shh!" She silenced him and he nodded, sinking back to wait as she was clearly in the throws of some kind of vision. He did not have to wait long before she dropped the stone to her lap and blinked a few times.

"Born as the seventh moon dies…" She whispered to herself and shook her head.

"The Prophecy?"

She nodded to him and looked over to where he sat. "Your son did not make it out of the month of July for a reason. He was born under circumstances outside of what we know…"

"The Prophecy was about Harry though…and Harry killed the Dark Lord. What does that have to do with my son?" He could feel chills going up his spine. All these years and Voldemort was still such a part of this world. He doubted they would ever truly be free of the wizard's hold in their memories.

Trelawney picked up the stone once more and looked it over slowly as she spoke. "Prophecies are funny things, Neville. We interpret them based on the immediate circumstances. One prophecy could have many meanings…"

"Are you saying the prophecy was wrong?"

"Prophecies are seldom wrong, my boy. But sometimes the medium is." She took off her glasses slowly. "Not every prophecy is laid out for us. Sometimes they take on a new life. You seeing the Dark Lord in your dream attacking your child and fiancé mirrors the death of Lily Potter."

Neville nodded to that slowly, glad he had not mentioned this dream to Harry yet. "I saw something else in the dream as well. When Voldemort attacked Lyra and she fell to the ground, she became my mother, Alice Longbottom….and Orion was me and I had Harry's scar on my forehead. In the dream, Voldemort looked right at me and told me it should have been me."

The divination teacher stared at him for a long moment and worried her lip between her teeth. "I fear that I don't have the answers to that question for you, Neville. The Dark Lord is gone…but there is always the threat that he could return again. I pray that he does not because what you just told me could mean many frightening things. If the Dark Lord is restored then I fear your family could be right at the center of the mayhem."

As the students began to file in for their divination class, Neville nodded again and thanked her for her help before getting up to head back to his class. He took the spiraling stairs down and thought the whole way about what this could mean.

He was sure of only one thing. They needed to catch the Dark Wizards once and for all.

"Think you can handle changing diapers by yourself, Neville? There won't be any nurses to do it for you." Ron snickered as they all sat around the living room of Neville and Lyra's home. Hermione had her own baby Rose in her arms and Ginny was trying to calm the crying Albus in the kitchen with a bottle.

"It won't be too hard. I've already changed a couple. How many have you changed?" Neville arched a brow at his friend who went a bit pink in the ears.

"He half changed one once…but he just couldn't cope and had to run to the loo throw up." Hermione laughed and looked to Lyra who was cradling her own small bundle in her arms, Orion wrapped in his blue blanket, one that Neville's mother had knitted long ago. "You know, he'll likely be a first year just like Albus and Rosie."

"Don't forget Scorpius." Harry said and Ginny tapped him on the shoulder as she returned to the room and handed him the baby.

"Enough from you. Harry is convinced that they'll all have the same rivalies as we did. We should just let them be kids. Draco is different now, remember?" She said and Lyra nodded in agreeance.

"He did save me, Harry. And he's been working a lot to stop the Dark Wizards on his end." She smiled to the man behind the glasses.

"He'll still likely be a Slytherin though…" Ron noted and Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"And so what if he is? Lyra was a Slytherin. They could be in any house for all I care, just as long as they are getting a good education and are safe."

They all nodded to that and Lyra smiled, looking down to Orion. "It seems so far away, you know? Thinking about him being eleven and getting his Hogwart's letter…"

"They grow up fast, so my mother keeps saying." Ginny told them and for a while, they all just and talked and drank tea and coffee. They reminisced about school and talked about their predictions of the future of their own children. And when dinner was done and the babies were starting to get fussy, they called an end to the night.

As Hermione opened the door to leave with Rose, Ron spotted someone coming up the steps and he tensed instantly at the sight of white hair and steel blue eyes.

"What are you doing here, Malfoy?" He asked and Hermione reached to take his hand with her empty one.

"Ron." Her voice was soft, but he also knew it held a warning to it.

Draco nodded to the two of them, Astoria coming behind him with their own child in arms. "I came to see my cousin." He told them, not really wanting to start a fight with anyone. When Harry appeared on the doorstep next, they exchanged glances like the two rivals that they had been and it was Draco first who stepped forward and offered his hand to him.

"Potter." He said in greeting and Harry hesitated a moment before reaching out to take the offering, shaking his hand firmly.

"Good to see you. You missed the party, I'm afraid." Harry told him and nodded to Ron who still wasn't so sure about shaking hands with a Slytherin.

"Actually, I'm right on time, it would seem." The former Death Eater smirked as he saw Neville and Lyra stepping out on the porch and he went to inspect the baby a moment before turning to Neville. "You ready?" He asked Neville and former nodded his head.

"Yeah…Lyra, Draco and I are going to just pop down the street a moment to the pub. You going to be okay?" Neville asked her, kissing her on the cheek.

"Sure…what are you going to talk about?" She asked and Draco shrugged a bit.

"Nothing really…just wanting to break him out for a drink before you both officially tie the knot. Harry? You're welcome to come along…and you Weasley." He added that last, though he really didn't look too thrilled with the idea.

Lyra arched a brow at them curiously. "What is this? A top secret "

Bachelor party?" She teased and when Neville blushed, she rolled her eyes. "You could have just told me."

"It was Draco's idea…" Neville told her and leaned in to kiss her softly. "You aren't mad at me, are you?" He whispered against her mouth and she smiled to herself.

"Never…just have fun…and don't do anything dumb, okay?" She stressed and he grinned and nodded to her before kissing her once more and then turned to kiss Orion on the head as well.

As the boys all wandered off down the street, the girls sighed, looking between each other and then the children in their arms.

"Well…I guess we all got hit with a Baby Boom…" Hermione laughed softly and Ginny chuckled in amusement.

"Suppose so. Well, lets get heading out then, we can do a girls night another day and make the men watch the kids." Lyra smiled and Astoria scoffed a laugh.

"Are you kidding? We wouldn't have children to come home to."

They all laughed at that and started to head their separate ways. Hermione lingered back for only a moment as she held her broom and put the baby in the sling around her shoulder for easy flying.

"You sure you'll be okay tonight?" She asked and Lyra nodded to her.

"Yeah, I'll be okay. I have that Nanny Charm you showed me and Neville won't be too far away. We have cell phones if I need to get in touch with him."

"You actually use cellphones? Why not just use a Commune spell?" Hermione looked at her curiously and the other girl shrugged.

"Just what I'm used to from living in London. I'll be okay though…" She looked down as Orion started to wail and bounced him gently in her arms. "Should go put him down I suppose. Thanks for coming, Hermione."

"My pleasure…you know where to go if you need anything at all, okay?"

Again, Lyra nodded and waved to the witch as she took off before turning and heading into the house. She settled Orion down upstairs, the nursery finally done with the help of a couple charms. She looked down at him in the crib as he continued to fuss for a bit before she sighed and took him out, changing him again, though he really didn't need it, but the baby still cried.

"What it is? Missing dad already? He'll be back…" She shushed the infant and sat down in the rocking chair in the room, patting him softly on the back before an idea crossed her. She slowly unbuttoned her shirt and brought the baby to her chest. He instantly went silent and latched onto her.

She smiled and looked down, watching him nursing. "Guess you were hungry, huh?" She smiled and leaned back, letting him continue until he was full. After patting him on the back again, she took him back to the crib and he laid down without a fuss, going straight to sleep.

"You're going to be one of those late night snackers…" She mused and then kissed him once more before taking out her wand to cast the charm before she headed down the hall to get herself ready for bed.

The charm was silent for a long time, the tiny radio that it enchanted next to her bed sending out only a small cry every now and then before Orion seemed to settle once more. She lay there listening, drifting off to sleep, but just as she was nearly out, she heard a voice over the radio.

"Hello, little Orion…where's your mommy at this evening? Can you hear me, Lyra? Why not come to the nursery?"

She sat up on the bed, blood suddenly ice cold. She recognized the voice instantly. Blaise Zabini.


	8. Chapter 8: The Trap

**Chapter Eight**

When Lyra came to the room, Blaise was pacing near the window and Orion was crying loudly in his crib. She had her wand in hand as she stepped inside and went to the crib, but Blaise was there in an instant to stop her.

"Put the wand down, Lyra." He hissed at her, his own pulled as he aimed it toward the crying infant.

Swearing softly, she let the wand drop to the ground, looking to Blaise. "Leave my baby out of this, Blaise. He has nothing to do with anything."

"Maybe…maybe not…but it keeps you in place, doesn't it?" He chuckled and pulled her away from the crib hard. She fought with him and he threw her down, letting her hit the rocking chair and then the floor.

"What do you want, Blaise? I didn't do anything to you." She winced as she tried to get up.

"Oh, play the innocent card some more, please. No. You did a lot, bitch. You made me look like an idiot. You and Longbottom." He glared down at her, pacing again. He looked terrible. His hair grown out along with a scratchy stubble on his jaw. His clothing was dirty, his cloak tattered at the end. He had definitely been living on the run.

"You tried to kill me, Blaise. What did you expect? I told you I wasn't Voldemort's child…but you still had to try to bring him back."

"We did bring him back." He chuckled and Lyra's blood went to freezing cold again.

"You couldn't have. We don't share the same blood. He's not my father."

"No…your blood didn't bring him to life. He's back though…he's right here with us."

His words made Lyra pause, glancing around the room. There was no one there but the three of them. "No, he isn't, Blaise. There is no one else here…"

Blaise laughed at that, running a hand up over his hair. "He's here alright…he's right here with us in this very room."

"You're crazy, Blaise." She told him and yelped as he reached down and grabbed her hair to pull her to her feet.

"Crazy? Call me crazy all you want, Lestrange, but that doesn't make the truth go away. I'm the one calling the shots here. I'm in control." He shook her hard by the hair, making her look up at him. "I've been running for months because of you and that little boyfriend of your's that had to butt into my business. How does it feel? To be screwing that blood traitor Longbottom?"

She glared up at him at that and tried to struggle free of his grip. "Better than it ever would be with you, Zabini." She shot and he laughed at that.

"Can to find out, love?" He whispered harshly, looking down at her lewdly as her eyes widened. "Tempting as it might be, you're just as dirty as any muggle-lover. Raised by that bloodtraitor Andromeda and her filthy muggle husband. Not to mention that metamorph bitch. Good thing she's dead though…her and that werewolf."

Lyra spat at him at his words. "Don't you ever speak ill of Remus in my presence. And certainly not of Tonks." She said and flinched when his wand was suddenly in her face.

"Don't forget who is in charge here, Lestrange. I'll say what I want and there is nothing you can do to stop me…" He told her and shoved her back roughly into the side of the crib. She hit and cursed softly when Orion started to cry harder.

"Orion…Shhhh." She tried to calm him, reaching through the bars to touch him, but Blaise snatched her arm back and threw her to the floor.

"Don't you touch him, bitch!" He snapped at her and she stared up at him with wide eyes.

"Please…Blaise, he's scared…let me calm him down…" She offered and he shook his head from side to side, looking down at her.

"Touch him and I hex you to the ceiling and start slicing your skin…That would be a pretty sight for Longbottom, don't you think? You hanging from the ceiling? All bled out onto your pretty yellow nursery…" He chuckled, seeming to like imagining that idea and he reached into his robe for his ceremonial knife. "Oh yes, I think we'll do that…"

With him distracted, she had time to dive for her wand and though he saw the motion, he was not quick enough to stop her. She aimed her wand at him and he aimed back at her, both staying very still. The crib behind Blaise.

"Careful, Lyra…if I dodge, you could hit your baby…or my knife just might slip to his throat…" He taunted, but she held firm, taking a deep breath.

"Funny that Longbottom hasn't come yet…" He whispered and she tensed lightly. "He's not here is he?"

His knowing laugh at her reaction made her pulse kick higher.

"Oh, this will be fun then…I'll kill you and then set a trap for Longbottom. The last thing he'll see will be your mutilated body and me taking his child away…"

Lyra eyed him at that, keeping her wand trained. "What do you want with Orion?"

He tsked softly at her. "No no…We aren't going into that, little bitch. Now put the wand down…" He ordered.

She hesitated, watching as he brought the knife out and she had to act, knowing it was risky either way. "Flagrate!"

A fiery spiral shot from her wand and at him, but he snarled and blocked it with his own spell. It gave her time to rush him though. "Expelliamus!" She cried out and his wand left his fingers and went across the room.

Showing his teeth in displeasure, he reached out with the knife and cut the air, slashing at her back deep and across her shoulder. She screamed, but her mind instantly numbed the pain as she snatched up Orion and pulled him to her, ending up against the wall, his tiny body pressed to her chest to protect him.

"Think you're lucky, bitch? I'm going to cut you up my hand now…Think your baby will like that? Hear his mother scream some more?" He flipped the knife over and moved to stab her, but she shut her eyes tightly, shielding the crying infant in her arms.

As she thought the knife would kill her, she braced herself and then heard the door blasted open.

"Avada Kedavra!" Came the yell and Lyra looked up instantly to see Blaise's body struck with the curse from behind and saw her cousin lowering his wand from the door. Neville came rushing in behind him as the Dark Wizard hit the floor and he came to her side, pulling her into him for an urgent hug.

"I'm so sorry, Lyra. Are you hurt? Is Orion hurt?" He was asked and she was speechless. How had he gotten here in time? It was amazing to her. She barely heard Orion screaming in her arms and she slowly shook her head and then looked down at the baby.

"N-no…he's fine…" She whispered thankfully and went into Neville's arms in relief as she saw Harry standing in the door to the nursery with Draco, both with wands in hand. She looked to them both and they nodded to her that it was over.

Neville buried his nose in her hair and held her tight, though careful of the baby, but when he felt the blood on her back, her pulled away from her. "Shit…Lyra." He looked to Draco who hadn't seen that she was hurt either and Harry cursed, seeing the blood on Neville's hand as he raised it. He rushed to them and held his arms for the baby, pulling it to him as he went to the crib to get a blanket to wrap it up.

Lyra tried to hold onto Orion, but she let them take him, starting to feel the pain now. "I…how did you know he was here?" She whispered and he tried to shush her.

"That doesn't matter. We're taking you to the hospital. That cut it deep, honey…your losing a lot of blood." He explained, pulling her up into his arms and though she tried to resist, she soon found herself being pulled and pinched as Neville apparated them to St. Mungo's, a place she was less and less fond of with every visit lately.

After some prodding and poking from the nurses and some bandaging, she was given some blood to replace what was lost and settled into a room just as the sun was starting to come up outside. She was exhausted, but she didn't want to sleep. She was too worried for the baby and where he might be.

When Neville returned to the room after a short time in the hall, she let out a sigh of relief. Orion was safe in his arms. He was joined by Ron, Harry, and Draco on his heels, but her first concern was her child. She held her arms out in the bed despite the pain in her back and cradled him to her.

The group smiled at the two and were about to leave them be for a private moment, but she looked up to them quickly.

"You didn't answer my question, Neville…how did you know that Blaise was going to be at the house? For you all to be there…you had to have known something was going to happen. How?"

Neville sighed softly, rubbing the back of his neck as he sat down on the edge of the bed and looked to the others a moment. "Draco managed to capture Pansy Parkinson a couple days ago…after some…talks, she finally let it slip that she and Zabini had been working together…"

Draco scoffed at that. "That's a nice way of saying it. I had to rough it out of her."

"Which you know we don't agree with." Ron said curtly and Harry held up a hand to stop him from arguing.

"As distasteful as his methods were, it also got her to confess. She spilled Blaise's plan to us…that he was going to break into the house and try to steal the baby for revenge against you and Neville." Harry told her and Lyra hugged the baby closer.

The thoughts swimming in her head of what Blaise had said. He was wanted the baby for a reason. "Did she say why he wanted Orion?"

Neville shook his head. "No…he just wanted Orion to get back at us…"

Lyra looked at him for a long moment. "He was going to kill us and then take Orion, Neville…he said so himself."

"No one is taking Orion, Lyra. Blaise is dead and Pansy is giving us the names of the Dark Wizards. Everything is going to be okay, Lyra." He told her and reached out to stroke her cheek fondly. She nodded to him slowly and kissed his fingers as she reached up to take his hand.

"Are you sure, Neville?" She asked and he sighed, looking her in the eyes as he caught hers. She was so beautiful sitting there with their child in her arms. He would never lie to her.

"I'm no fortune teller, but I know my gut feeling tells me that it's over. It's all finally over. Now we start enjoying life. No hiding, no fighting. Just you and me and Orion." He kissed her and she pulled away a bit.

"About that, Neville…"

He blinked at that, looking at her worriedly. "About what…?"

She smiled lightly, not really sure she could keep it in forever. It was a hell of a time to bring it up, but she needed it out in the open. "I think I might be pregnant again."

Neville flushed at that. "Really…?" He asked and Lyra nodded to him slowly.

"I think so." She smiled brightly to him and he kissed her excitedly and then Orion who was just waking, grinning to himself.

"Looks like you're going to be a big brother, Orion…" He couldn't wait. He had wanted a family for so long…and now that dream was coming true. "I love you…both of you."

Lyra chuckled and laid back down in the hospital bed. "I love you too. When I get out of here…I never want to see another hospital again."

He nodded to her. "Alright…deal." He told her and kissed her again softly as they just let the happiness of the moment surround the three of them. From here on, everything was going to be good.


	9. Chapter 9: The Basilisk

**Chapter Nine**

"Just go talk to her, Orion" Scorpius nudged his class mate during Defense Against the Dark Arts.

The brunette first year's yes went wide. "T-talk to her? About what? I'd freeze up like a pixi in a blizzard!" He said to his friend as he looked across to where Rose Weasley sat with Calista Ravenhook. The first years had been divided up into pairs by the professor to work in groups.

In the back, Orion sat with his cousin and best friend Scorpius, who had apparently noted him staring longingly at the pretty red head near the front of the room.

"Well, with an attitude like that you will! Just say something nice to her. Girl's like that sort of thing." The blonde told him as he nudged him off the edge of the bench seat and to his feet. Orion stumbled with a yelp, his dark brown hair flying down into his eyes.

Taking a deep breath, he reached up to push the hair back from his eyes and started on shaky legs for the table where the two Gryffindors sat chatting away. Merlin, he couldn't do this. He just couldn't. He was going to die. Was he sweating? His hands felt like they were dripping.

"Umm…Hi, Rose." He said nervously as he was suddenly at the table, looking like a deer caught in the headlights of a train. Both girls looked up from their conversation and to him oddly.

"Uh….Hi?" Rose gave a small, awkward laugh, not really sure what the Slytherin wanted by coming over to their table and butting in their conversation. When he hesitated, she looked back to her book to get back to her assignment.

Great. What now? He thought, trying to come up with something to say to her.

"I umm…I just wanted to say hi." He explained and felt like hitting his head on the desk. Idiot. His face was flushing off color when she looked at him again.

"Yeah…you did that." Rose told him and next to her, Calista was fighting a fit of giggles.

"Oh. I guess I did, huh…? Well, um…"

"What, Orion? We're trying to do our assignment."

"I just…I was…umm…" He looked back to Scorpius who was holding up a sign on a piece of parchment reading SMARTS. "I uh…I just wanted to say I like your brains…" The sound of Scorpius' head thudding on the desk was audible through the whole room.

"You…like my brains?" Rose wrinkled her nose at that. What was his problem?

"I mean! I mean…how smart you are…not your brains. I mean…I guess that is your brains, but you're just so smart and I just-" He was rambling by the time the professor stepped up behind him.

"Is everything okay here, Mr. Longbottom?" Professor Weasley asked him with a curious tone to his voice. He had been teaching the class for about three years since his return from his work in Romania with dragons.

"Y-yes, Professor…" Orion stammered up at Rose's uncle, his face going a shade redder than the hair of his crush.

"Can you take your seat then, please?"

Orion gave a shaky nod and went back to his seat with Scorpius in the back of the room, the blonde just sat shaking his head.

"I like your brain? Really?" He asked in a hushed voice and Orion shot him a look that told him to shut up.

When the class was released fifteen minutes later, Orion left his friend to hand in their assignment and hurriedly packed his bag up so he could get out of class as fast as possible. Not wanting to embarrass himself further.

By the time he got out the door, Rose and Calista were already out and he was thankful for that up until he spotted Alexander Wood wrapping his arms around Rose to kiss her softly.

Orion felt his stomach knot at the sight of the second year boy kissing the one person he pined for the most. How could she like him of all people? Well, he supposed Wood was good looking…a good Quidditch player like his father had been before him. And he was smart, but he was also one of the largest jerks in school. The Gryffindor was not shy about his dislike for Slytherins.

As he stood there watching, he could feel his heart sinking and he slowly turned and headed toward the dungeons, suddenly feeling too sick to his stomach to go to his next class.

It was an effort to drag himself out of his room for dinner that night. Not really in a mood for anything to eat. On his way down to dinner, he found himself wandering the halls in a bit of a daze, hit pet toad Mortimer perched on his shoulder.

Orion sighed as he walked between the warm glow of the wall sconces in the second floor hallway.

Why wouldn't she even give him the time of day? They had known each other for so long. Grown up together as little kids, but since they had started school and been sorted into their separate houses, she had wanted nothing to do with him.

"It's because I'm not a Gryffindor." He told Mortimer, the only one he really could speak his mind to. "It's not my fault. It doesn't make me a bad guy, but she seems to think I am. I wish that hat hadn't put me in Slytherin…"

The toad croaked softly to him, a soft, understanding noise.

"I know, I know…but what does she see in Wood? He's got enough personality as a brick. And he's such a jerk. I was the one that was always there for her…" He sighed lightly and ran a hand up into his hair. Merlin, he hated the other boy.

"Awww. Going to cry in the halls over your lost love? Boo hoo hoo…I could be your girlfriend, if you wanted…" Came a high pitched giggle from behind him and Orion nearly jumped from his skin as he turned to look at the ghost floating there.

"Woah…you're Moaning Myrtle, right? I've never talked to a ghost before…"

"That's because no one TALKS TO GHOSTS!" She screamed at him with a horrible sound to her voice and then floated toward a door and disappeared inside.

"Wait! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you." He told her, moving to follow her inside, but he hesitated at the sight of the girl's restroom sign. No one was in there…it was just Myrtle. Pursing his lips, he stepped inside and over to where the ghost was sitting on the sink and crying into her hands.

She was sobbing when he moved closer, his eyes glancing over the beautiful, moving stained glass windows in the room and he stepped slowly to the ornate, circular sinks in the middle of the room.

"Hey…look I'm really sorry…" He started to apologize, but paused when he heard hissing in the room. Myrtle's tears stopped then, peeking out from her fingers at the noise and her eyes were dry. Of course they were though…ghosts couldn't really cry.

Orion follow the hissing sound to the sink near her.

"What is that?" He asked, but he soon got his answer as the hissing turned to a voice, softly speaking to him.

"The heir of Slytherin returns…" It whispered, hissing on the words and he narrowed his eyes.

"The what?"

"The Heir…we have waited for our Master to return to use for so long. All this time we have slept and waited." As the voice spoke, the sinks began to shift and one pulled out of the way, opening a chamber that lead down into the pipes below. He stepped forward, peering down into the darkness of the pit. "Come, Master…" The voice called softly.

He arched a brow, not sure what was going on, but he didn't like it. "I…I'm not the heir of Slytherin. I'm just Orion." He told it uncertainly. Wasn't Voldemort once called the Heir of Slytherin?

"You speak in our tongue. Only he knew it…" It whispered and he shook his head.

"Tongue?"

"The language of snakes. Come, Master. Release us from the chamber again and we will do your bidding."

Orion stepped back from the sinks at that and turned his head, hearing someone in the hall calling to him. Scorpius was looking for him.

"Sorry, you've got the wrong person." Orion told the voice before he turned, heading for the door and out into the hallway. Scorpius stood there in the hall, holding Mortimer in his hands. He looked at his friend oddly.

"What were you doing in the girl's restroom?" He asked, handing the toad over to his friend who shrugged.

"Just talking to Myrtle…lets get going. I need to get some studying done for potions tomorrow." He told Scorpius as that headed down the hallway for the dungeons once more.

As they went down the stairs, a slithering body inched out into the hallway, tongue flickering a moment as it looked towards the boys and then turned to head the other way into the school's corridors.

**The End**


	10. A Thank You

_**Dear Reader,**_

_I wanted to thank you all for reading this series on behalf of Lyra, Orion, the writer, and myself. We all had fun with the process, the ups and downs and everything in between. It's been a fun adventure, but now it must come to an end like all good things. Now, I have to get started on my own work once more before the holidays here at Hogwarts which I am sure the students will dread. Don't they always dread the winter exams. However, I wanted to take the time to thank you all for coming along with us._

_As I write this, a very old Trevor is napping on the edge of my desk, but I'm sure he sends his thanks as well. There are many more adventures in the wizarding world that await you from many other writers and to those who carry on our other tales, thank you as well for keeping us alive on the page. As long as the reader can step into our world through your words, then the magic is still alive in the world._

_Until we meet again, reader._

_Happy Christmas and a Merry New Year,_

_Professor Neville Longbottom_


End file.
